According to earlier reports by the South Korean media, several anti-ship missiles were launched from the outskirts of the coastal city of Wonsan. They flew for about 200 kilometers and splashed down in the Sea of Japan, outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for North Korea’s interior ministry lashed at US and international sanctions against the Communist state, adding that such measures would only push the country to further develop its nuclear potential.

In the statement, made in response to US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s remarks during his visit to New Zealand, the spokesman criticized the US top diplomat’s "trite and unconvincing reasons for tightening sanctions against North Corea."

"Washington has to understand that military threats by the United States and loud calls for sanctions will only make North Korea to engage more actively in developing its nuclear forces," the Rodong Sinmun paper quoted the official as saying, adding that Tillerson "shows great incompetence regarding North Korea’s capabilities and seems to be losing his grip of reality.".